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Weekly Republican Address 3/2/13: Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)
House Republican Conference Chair Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) delivers this week’s address, calling on President Obama and Senate Democrats to negotiate a solution to the President’s devastating spending cuts, known as the sequester. The President’s sequester went into effect March 1st. The Democrat-led Senate has not passed any replacement plan, and the President has not put any solution forward. The House has acted–twice–to replace the sequester with responsible cuts and reforms. Washington Democrats must act.
Millennials Video: How the Debt Impacts Us
The growing national debt demands immediate attention and real solutions from America’s elected leadership.
That was the message delivered yesterday by a group of young Americans at a press conference with House Budget Committee Chairman Paul Ryan (R-WI) and Representative Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA).
“The greatest dysfunction of all is the fact that these young people standing here are facing a diminished future, no matter how you slice it,” said Ryan. “This isn’t a Republican issue. It’s not a Democrat issue. It’s a math issue.”
“Sixteen trillion dollars is a huge number, and individually, if you do the math, each of us are over a hundred thousand dollars in debt,” said Sohaani Perera, an attendee from College Park,Maryland.
“I’ve never even seen that much money in my life, and the idea of being that much in debt for something I’m not even responsible for – I feel penalized, and so does the rest of my generation,” she said.
The conference followed House Republicans’ inaugural “Millennial Meetup” roundtable, where lawmakers met with young leaders from The Can Kicks Back group and National Campus Leadership Council.
Representatives Adam Kinzinger (R-IL) and Aaron Schock (R-IL) also spoke at the press conference, which was sponsored by the House Republican Conference, chaired by McMorris Rogers.
“I think it’s unfair of us now to ask that once [young people] become—once they have families, once they’re out in the workplace, that we ask them to bear the national debt because of our out-of-control spending,” said Kinzinger.
Other students worried about whether or not the entitlements they are paying for would be there when they retired.
“My other concerns are that when I do reach the age where I will be able to collect Medicare and Medicaid, that it’s not going to be there,” said Katelyn Williams of Hempstead, New York.
That’s right. Without real reforms, these programs will not be there for these students. They must be reformed.
The debt issue is one of basic responsibility, said John Pendleton ofRichmond,Virginia.
“I feel like I’ve been fiscally responsibly in saving money, so I expect the government to do the same,” he said.
ACU Annouces 2012 Ratings Of Congress
WASHINGTON, D.C. – The American Conservative Union (ACU) Chairman Al Cardenas today announced the 2012 ACU Ratings of Congress, the 42nd edition of the conservative ratings guide. Since 1971, the nation’s oldest and largest grassroots conservative organization has annually graded Members of Congress based on their votes on key conservative issues. The full 2012 ACU Ratings of Congress guide is now available online at conservative.org.
“For the past 42 years, through the Congressional and now the State Ratings, the American Conservative Union has set the standard for and played a major role in giving the American people the tools they need to make informed voting decisions at every level of government,” said ACU Chairman Al Cardenas. “On behalf of our entire Board of Directors, I applaud and thank the many Senators and Representatives who achieved perfect or high scores on our 2012 ACU Ratings of Congress. Their unwavering commitment to our shared conservative principles stands in stark contrast to the liberals in Washington who continue to want an expanded role for government at taxpayers’ expense.”
Throughout the history of the conservative ratings program, ACU has become the go-to source for determining whether an elected official’s philosophical rhetoric matches his or her record. The guides provide a comprehensive analysis of the legislative landscape over the preceding year. This differentiates ACU from other useful guides which may emphasize single areas, like taxes, defense, or social policy. The ACU tracks a wide range of issues before Congress to determine which issues and votes serve as a clear litmus test separating those representatives who defend liberty and liberal members who have turned their backs on our founding principles – constitutionally limited government, individual liberty, free markets, a strong national defense and traditional American values.
The 2012 ACU Ratings of Congress includes scores for each individual member in both the Senate and the House of Representatives, a description of the votes scored in each Chamber and lists of members receiving special recognition as “Defenders of Liberty,” – those scoring a perfect 100 percent – or “ACU Conservatives” – those scoring 80 percent or higher.
ACU today announced the winners of the “Defender of Liberty” award, given to those members of the Congressional Legislature who were present and cast a vote for each adjudicated roll call and scored 100 percent on the 2012 ACU Ratings of Congress. In the Senate, these members included: Ron Johnson, John Kyl, Mike Lee, Mitch McConnell, Rand Paul, Marco Rubio, and Pat Toomey.
In the House, these members included: Michele Bachmann, Diane Black, Marsha Blackburn, Paul Broun, Dan Burton, Mike Conaway, Jeff Duncan, Jeff Flake, John Fleming, Bill Flores, Trent Franks, Scott Garrett, Trey Gowdy, Tom Graves, Wally Herger, Duncan Hunter, Lynn Jenkins, Jim Jordan, Jeff Landry, Randy Neugebauer, Pete Olson, Mike Pompeo, Bill Posey, Tom Price, Ben Quayle, Todd Rokita, Ed Royce, Steve Scalise, David Schweikert, Tim Scott, Cliff Stearns, Marlin Stutzman, Lynn Westmoreland, and Joe Wilson.
The winners of the “ACU Conservative” award – given to those members who scored 80 percent or higher – in the Senate are: John Barrasso, Richard Burr, Dan Coats, Thomas Coburn, Bob Corker, John Cornyn, Mike Crapo, Saxby Chambliss, Jim DeMint, Mike Enzi, Lindsey Graham, Orrin Hatch, Jim Inhofe, John Isakson, Mike Johanns, John McCain, Jim Risch, Jeff Sessions and David Vitter.
In the House, these members included: Sandy Adams, ToddAkin, Justin Amash, Mark Amodei, Spencer Bachus, Joe Barton, Dan Benishek, Rick Berg, Gus Bilirakis, Rob Bishop, Charles Boustany, Kevin Brady, Mo Brooks, Larry Bucshon, Ann Marie Buerkle, Michael Burgess, Dave Camp, John Campbell, Francisco Canseco, Eric Cantor, John Carter, Bill Cassidy, Steve Chabot, Jason Chaffetz, Howard Coble, Mike Coffman, John Culberson, Jeff Denham, Charlie Dent, Scott DesJarlais, David Dreier, Sean Duffy, John Duncan, Renee Ellmers, Blake Farenthold, Stephen Fincher, Chuck Fleischmann, J. Randy Forbes, Virginia Foxx, Elton Gallegly, Cory Gardner, Bob Gibbs, Phil Gingrey, Louie Gohmert, Bob Goodlatte, Paul Gosar, Kay Granger, Sam Graves, Tim Griffin, Frank Guinta, Brett Guthrie, Ralph Hall, Gregg Harper, Andy Harris, Vicki Hartzler, Doc Hastings, Jeb Hensarling, Tim Huelskamp, Bill Huizenga, Randall Hultgren, Robert Hurt, Darrell Issa, Sam Johnson, Bill Johnson, Steve King, Jack Kingston, John Kline, Raul Labrador, Doug Lamborn, James Lankford, Bob Latta, Billy Long, Blaine Luetkemeyer, Cynthia Lummis, Connie Mack, Don Manzullo, Kenny Marchant, Kevin McCarthy, Michael McCaul, Tom McClintock, Patrick McHenry, Buck McKeon, Cathy McMorris Rodgers, John Mica, Jeff Miller, Gary Miller, Mick Mulvaney, Sue Myrick, Kristi Noem, Richard Nugent, Devin Nunes, Alan Nunnelee, Steven Palazzo, Erik Paulsen, Steve Pearce, Mike Pence, Ted Poe, Tom Reed, Reid Ribble, Scott Rigell, Phil Roe, Mike Rogers (MI), Dana Rohrabacher, Tom Rooney, Peter Roskam, Dennis Ross, Paul Ryan, Jean Schmidt, Austin Scott, Jim Sensenbrenner, Pete Sessions, Mike Simpson, Lamar Smith, Adrian Smith, Steve Southerland, John Sullivan, Mac Thornberry, Scott Tipton, Tim Walberg, Joe Walsh, Daniel Webster, Allen West, Rob Wittman, Rob Woodall, Kevin Yoder, and Todd Young.
2012 Ratings of the United States Congress by The American Conservative Union
The full guide can be accessed and downloaded now at conservative.org.
The ACU recently announced its 2012 Ratings of Congress, the 42nd edition of the conservative ratings guide. For more information on the ACU PAC or to download the full 2012 Ratings of Congress, please visit conservative.org.
Post Offers Hint of GOP Path Choice for House Leadership Role – Could Help Party Shift Message After Losses
WSJ – As Republicans grapple with how to adjust their party’s long-term strategy in the aftermath of last week’s election losses, an immediate choice facing the party could provide an early signal on which way it is headed.
House Republicans vote Wednesday on their leaders for the next two years. Most of the top slots are all but assured, including Ohio Rep. John Boehner’s re-election as speaker. But a hard-fought contest is brewing between Reps. Cathy McMorris Rodgers of Washington and Tom Price of Georgia for the fourth-most-senior position.
The two lawmakers are seeking the job of conference chairman, whose job is to shape the Republican message and run House GOP meetings.
Mr. Price, 58 years old, is a former chairman of the Republican Study Committee, a powerful group of House conservatives who often pull the party’s leadership to the right. First elected in 2004, he emerged from the party’s longstanding power base.
Ms. McMorris Rodgers, 43, also is conservative. But as a young mother from the Northwest, she fits a profile that is rarer for the GOP and that House members might find appealing after an election in which the party struggled to attract female voters.
McMorris Rodgers Statement on EU Summit & Latest Developments with Greek Bailout
Obama Administration, IMF & EU Continue to Go in Wrong Direction;
Tens of Billions of US Tax Money Threatened;
Only Real Solution is Fiscal Discipline
Spokane, WA – With European Union (EU) leaders meeting in Brussels today amidst growing concern that Greece may abandon the euro after receiving about $500 billion in global bailouts, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference, released the following statement warning that the decisions by the EU, the International Monetary Fund (IMF), and the Obama Administration to paper over the European debt crisis with bailouts – partly funded by U.S. taxpayers – will fail and the only way to truly solve the crisis is through serious fiscal discipline:
“At this point, it should be clear that America and the IMF are throwing good money after bad, and the only real solution is for Greece and the European Union to stop their borrowing addiction, instead of papering it over. The Greek bailout, in particular, has been a failure. When the bailouts began in May 2010, Greece’s debt-to-GDP ratio was 113 percent. Today, it’s 159 percent. And Greece continues to run a deficit equal to 10 percent of its economy. There is no way for Greece to start reducing its debt burden until those deficits stop. It’s just simple math. Of course, that’s equally true for America. We’re not that far behind. Which is why we must start getting serious about protecting U.S. tax dollars and ending the ‘too big to fail’ philosophy. The only thing ‘too big to fail’ is America itself.”
Nearly one-third of the Greek bailout is financed by the IMF, and the U.S. is the largest contributor to the IMF. In March 2010, Rep. McMorris Rodgers was the first Member of Congress to publicly oppose U.S. participation through the IMF in the EU bailouts. She is the author of HR 2313, which would rescind what remains of a $100 billion line of credit to the IMF (created in 2009, known as the “New Arrangements to Borrow”), which is being tapped for the European bailouts. The bill has 94 cosponsors.
“The purpose of reducing our IMF funding to pre-Obama levels isn’t to punish Europe. Rather, it’s meant to help Europe make the tough choices that are necessary for a true, sustainable recovery. That recovery can’t happen until job creators – in Europe and the U.S. – gain confidence that the world’s governments have the discipline to get spending and borrowing under control and unleash the power of free enterprise.”
A compilation of the Congresswoman’s work on this issue can be found here.
McMorris Rodgers: “Administration Continues to Discount the Riskiness of U.S. Involvement in the European Bailouts”
McMorris Rodgers Reacts to Geithner Testimony on
IMF Funding & Transparency
“Administration Continues to Discount the Riskiness of
U.S. Involvement in the European Bailouts”
Washington, D.C. – Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference and author of H.R. 2313, which would rescind a $100 billion line of credit to the International Monetary Fund (IMF), which is being used to bail out European countries, released the following statement today after Treasury Secretary Timothy Geithner testified before the House Financial Services Committee on several issues, including the IMF and the “state of the international financial system”:
“I appreciate the Administration’s stated concern about what is going on in Europe. However, Secretary Geithner was unconvincing in his remarks about America’s role in the European bailouts, including the most recent bailout of Greece announced last week. With the Administration’s support, the IMF – of which the U.S. is the largest contributor – has already committed tens of billions of dollars to Greece, a country which is technically in default. As Representative Neugebauer noted today, U.S. money at the IMF is ‘safe’ in the same way that U.S. money at Fannie Mae and Freddie Mac was ‘safe’ before the 2008 financial crisis. By continuing to dismiss the riskiness of these loans – including his own Department’s estimate of a $5 billion loss at the IMF – Secretary Geithner failed to reassure Congress, and more importantly, the American people, that our tax money is safe.”
In addition, Secretary Geithner was asked today if he would seek Congressional approval before rolling in the $100 billion line of credit (known as the “New Arrangements to Borrow”) to fulfill his commitment to double America’s quota at the IMF. The Secretary replied, “Yes, we will.”
On March 6, Rep. McMorris Rodgers sent a letter to Secretary Geithner insisting that he would need to come back to Congress before taking this action.
H.R. 2313 has 93 cosponsors.
A compilation of the Congresswoman’s work on this issue can be found here.
McMorris Rodgers Calls on Administration to Vote Against New Greek Bailout at Thursday’s IMF Meeting
IMF Will Consider $37 Billion Loan to Greece;
Administration Has Unique Chance to Protect U.S. Tax Dollars
San Francisco, CA – With the International Monetary Fund (IMF) Executive Board scheduled to meet on Thursday to consider a $37 billion loan to Greece as part of the latest $171 billion bailout of that country, Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA), Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference, called on the Obama Administration today to protect U.S. taxpayer dollars and vote “no” on the agreement. The U.S. has the power to call for a vote at the IMF Executive Board, and all decisions put to a vote require a majority to pass. The U.S. is the largest contributor to the IMF, with $165 billion at stake. The total cost of the Greek bailouts has been estimated at $500 billion.
“At this point, it should be clear that America and the IMF are throwing good money after bad, and the only real solution is for Greece and the European Union to stop their borrowing addiction, instead of papering it over,” said Rep. McMorris Rodgers.” In a letter to Treasury Secretary Tim Geithner last week, she noted that when the Greek bailouts began in May 2010, Greece’s debt-to-GDP ratio was 113 percent. Today, it’s 159 percent. And Greece continues to run enormous deficits. “There should be no deficits in Greece,” said Rep. McMorris Rodgers. “There is no way for Greece to start reducing its debt burden until those deficits stop. It’s just simple math. Of course, that’s equally true for America. We’re not that far behind. Which is why we must start getting serious about protecting U.S. tax dollars and ending the ‘too big to fail to fail’ philosophy. The only thing ‘too big to fail’ is America itself.”
Rep. McMorris Rodgers is the author of HR 2313, which would rescind a $100 billion line of credit to the IMF (created in 2009, and known as the “New Arrangements to Borrow”), and which is being tapped for the European bailouts. The bill has 92 cosponsors.
A compilation of the Congresswoman’s work on this issue can be found here.
Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers: Why is Obama Bailing Out Greece? And Why is the MSM Covering Up For Him?
Decades ago, when British Prime Minister Harold Macmillen was asked by a journalist what would decide an upcoming election, he replied: “Events, my dear boy, events.” As we take stock of where we are – and what’s likely to happen between now and the first Tuesday of November – it’s clear that one of the greatest “events” facing us today – which also has the potential to escalate much further – is the European debt crisis.
The mainstream media has given a lot of coverage to the debt crisis and the bailout bonanza it’s unleashed – first the Greek bailout, then the Irish and Portuguese bailouts, then Greece again. But the MSM conveniently forgets to mention two important things: the role of the International Monetary Fund in funding these bailouts (one-third of the cost, actually), and the fact that America is the largest contributor to the IMF.
This month, the European Union unveiled its umpteenth bailout of Greece, bringing the total cost of that bailout alone to $500 billion (or more than the entire Greek economy). That doesn’t include the cost of the Ireland and Portugal bailouts (combined total: $259 billion), and the growing likelihood that Spain and Italy will need bailouts too. While the MSM looks the other way, a critical mass of bloggers and activists are starting to ask the question, “At a time when America is borrowing over $1 trillion every single year, why are we borrowing more money – much of it from China – to bail out Europe?”
Even the White House understands the political potency of this issue. At last week’s White House press briefing, Deputy Press Secretary Josh Earnest was asked whether the Administration would come to Congress to request more funding for the IMF. Earnest said “further contributions” to the IMF are “off the table.” But that’s misleading. Every month, the IMF is using “further contributions” from you – the taxpayer – through America’s $68 billion IMF quota plus a separate $100 billion line of credit called the “New Arrangements to Borrow” (NAB) – for the European bailouts. Those bailouts could be stopped by the Administration, but they refuse to take action. Why? Because they support the bailouts (albeit quietly). And the media won’t call them out on it. And so, it’s time for Congress to take action to protect your tax money.
I have introduced legislation, HR 2313, that would repeal the Administration’s $100 billion line of credit to the IMF. As of today, only $7 billion of that $100 billion has been committed, so we have up to $93 billion to protect and designate for deficit reduction. Every day, that money is in jeopardy of being committed by the IMF, so we don’t have time to waste. And should Spain or Italy need a bailout, there is no question that most of the $100 billion will disappear, and quickly.
My bill has 91 cosponsors. Sen. Jim DeMint has introduced a similar bill in the Senate – S. 1276 – which has 25 cosponsors, more than half the Republican Conference. At the very least, we should have a public debate about whether or not America should be involved in these European bailouts. And the Administration should be honest about its support for them. If the mainstream media won’t hold the Administration accountable, Congress and the blogosphere must do it for them. I, for one, will continue to oppose American involvement in a European TARP. We cannot afford to take the “too big to fail” philosophy to a global level. The only thing “too big to fail” is America itself.
Originally posted @ RedState.com by Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) is Vice Chair of the House Republican Conference. A compilation of her work against the IMF bailouts can be found here.
Weekly Republican Address 2/18/12: Rep. Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA)
In the Weekly Republican Address, House Republican Conference Vice-Chairwoman Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) discusses the failure and lack of leadership behind the president’s budget proposal for the 2013 fiscal year. His budget pretends to cut spending that’s already enacted into law, and he fails to address the true economic challenges our country faces every day. House Republicans have a plan, and we’re working to help boost our economy by cutting government spending and reducing burdensome regulations for small businesses. Learn more at http://jobs.gop.gov
“Hello, I’m Cathy McMorris Rodgers, and I have the honor of the hardworking taxpayers of Eastern Washington. I’m also a mother of two young kids, Cole and Grace, and like millions of other moms across America, I’m concerned about our children’s future, and the economy they’ll inherit.
“On February 23rd 2009, during a fiscal responsibility summit at the White House, President Obama made a promise to the American people. ‘I’m pledging,’ he said, ‘to cut the deficit we inherited by half by the end of my first term in office.’
“Well, in the budget he submitted this week to Congress, the president admitted he won’t keep his promise. He won’t even come close. Because of the president’s failure to control spending, the government will run trillion-dollar deficits in each of his four years in office.
“President Obama’s broken promises have left our country broke. On his watch, the size of our debt has surpassed the size of our entire economy – making it harder for small businesses to create jobs and pushing us closer to a fiscal crisis.
“I’m afraid his budget is even worse than it looks. More than half of the proposed ‘savings’ in the president’s budget for the next year – about $2 trillion – are already law. These savings come from the Budget Control Act – the bill congressional Republicans insisted that the president sign last year in response to his demand for an increase in the nation’s debt limit. The president spent nearly six months last year resisting those spending reductions, until he finally listened to the people. Another almost $1 trillion in ‘savings’ comes from what we call the ‘war gimmick’ – money that was never requested and will never be spent on wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Those aren’t real savings. Do the math and you’ll discover that the president’s budget only achieves, at most, about a tenth of the savings it promises. This kind of accounting would sink any business or household.
“It isn’t all that surprising, however, when you consider that a lot of what President Obama promised about the economy has turned out to be untrue.
“Friday marked the three-year anniversary of the infamous ‘stimulus’ spending bill. The president’s team said the unemployment rate would stay below eight percent if taxpayers gave his party a blank check to spend on government programs, but that promise didn’t pan out either. In fact, unemployment has been above eight percent for three years running. Gas prices have nearly doubled since the president took office. And the new health care law is making it harder for small businesses to hire new workers and provide insurance for their employees.
“You see, the president and his party have it all wrong. They believe they can grow the economy and create jobs by increasing government spending and raising taxes, including taxes on small businesses. But the American people know that the way to grow the economy and create jobs is by cutting government spending and keeping taxes low for all taxpayers.
“Unfortunately, the president’s budget continues on this wrong path. Instead of leading the effort to bring down our debt and make tough choices, the president is proposing that we spend more and more. All his wasteful spending puts us deeper in debt to China. All his tax hikes would destroy jobs and make it tougher to compete with China.
“If we keep on going like this, the consequences will be devastating. As we’ve learned from Greece and the European Union, no country can escape the costs of big government policies forever. The president’s budget isn’t a blueprint for America – it’s a roadmap to Greece.
“It didn’t have to be this way. The president and his party have been given numerous opportunities to rein in spending and help create a better environment for job creation, and they’ve punted almost every time. The president’s Democratic colleagues in the Senate haven’t produced a budget in nearly three years. That’s like writing checks all year long without balancing your checkbook. They wouldn’t even accept spending cuts to go along with the payroll tax holiday extension agreed to by Republicans and Democrats this week – spending cuts that came mostly from the president’s own proposals.
“And now, after breaking his promise to cut the deficit in half, the president can’t even offer a credible budget. That just isn’t leadership.
“The American people deserve better. My children and yours – who will inherit this debt – deserve much better. This spring, Republicans will again offer a pro-growth budget that lifts the crushing burden of debt and secures a future of opportunity and prosperity. This budget is part of Republicans’ Plan for America’s Job Creators, which removes government barriers to private-sector job creation – a stark contrast to the president’s failed ‘stimulus’ approach. Learn more about the Republican jobs plan by visiting jobs.GOP.gov.
“Thank you for listening, and God bless America.”
VIDEO: MF Global Oversight Hearings
On February 2, 2012, I joined Cathy McMorris Rodgers (R-WA) and Mike Fitzpatrick (R-PA) in a conference call to discuss the second MF Global hearing, held by the Oversight and Investigations Subcommittee on Financial Services. Video courtesy of the Financial Services Committee (financialservices.house.gov).
